Garrott Optim Ruby FGS cartridge - Technics SL1210

Dear Dsa: IMHO and before you buy any other tonearm you have to test your cartridges on the own Technics tonearm.

That tonearm is very good design with very good build quality. Do you already try the Garrot with it? what do you think about?

The RB-1000 is very good tonearm that could give you a different performance than the Technics ( here you could re-wire the Technics tonearm. ) but to know for sure which one is the best garrot match you have to hear both.

Now, the Technics is a removable headshell and this is an advantage over the Rega/Origin live ones because changing the headshell you could achieve a better Quality Garrot performance and find with which headshell the Technics is the best Garrot match and this fact makes a huge difference, this you can't do it with the other tonearms.

Regards and enjoy the msuic.
Raul.

Hi Raul,
Thanks for your response. I have tried an Ortofon OM5 cartridge from my stand-by Project TT in the Technics arm. Although PRAT are very good, the sound is very grey with no air around the instruments and little detail or soundstage. This is comparing it to the same set-up in my budget Project deck. It suspect, as you have pointed out, that the wiring in the Technics TT is craptacular. I would have to send the tonearm OS in order to have it rewired (I don't live in the USA). Since I would be going to that much trouble, I figured I'd just replace the tonearm with something more suiting the Garrott- hence my posting about what one to choose.
Cheers.

05-05-08: Dsa
Hi Raul,
Thanks for your response. I have tried an Ortofon OM5 cartridge from my stand-by Project TT in the Technics arm. Although PRAT are very good, the sound is very grey with no air around the instruments and little detail or soundstage.

I have an SL1210 M5G, which has better tonearm wiring from the Technics factory. I've played it with an Ortofon OM10, Shure M97xE, and Denon DL-160.

Based on my experience with the Ortofon OM10, your OM5 wouldn't be nearly up to showing what the stock SL12x0 can do. Now, when I switch between the DL-160 and OM10, the OM10 sounds rough and ill-defined, with a ragged, not too defined bass.

I also added the KAB fluid damper, and with the Denon, the sound is anything but flat and grey, or veiled. It's transparent, sometimes shockingly so, and the fluid damper has particularly helped resolve air around instruments and hear the recording venue and the volume decay of individual instrumental tones.

I agree with what Raul says here. In addition, the Technics arm makes it very easy to dial in the optimum VTA, and with some stylus shapes that is critical to getting the best sound. Also, you can adjust the fluid level in the damping trough to get a better match to various cartridges.

The combination of the double-gimbal pivot plus adjustable VTA plus adjustable damping enable this arm to accommodate a wide variety of cartridges, from high-compliance Shures and Grados to the stiff little Denon DL-103.

The Technics benefits greatly from improvements in the feet and isolation of the platform it sits on. I get immense sonic and musical enjoyment from mine.

Hello Johnny B,
Thanks for the input. The point I was making about the budget OM5 was that it sounded cheap, yet cheerful in the Project, yet grey, veiled and with even muddier bass in the SL1210 arm. If I strapped a floor nail to the Project's tonearm, it would sound bad. If I put the same floor nail on the Technics tonearm, it would sound even worse! I was simply comparing oranges with oranges.
Yes, you have the Technics with the better wiring. I could rewire the arm and pay for the fluid dampener. That combo would cost more than $550. If I'm going to that much trouble and cost, I thought I could ditch the arm, put on a better one, and sell the original arm to recoup some of the cost. Never-the-less, I will make an enquiry here as to the cost of rewiring the arm with some decent wiring. By the way, does anyone know the answer to my intial question: Which tonearm would the Garrott be happier in- The Rega 1000 or the Origin Live Silver??? Cheers.